Kayleen Lynn Kessinger Elson

Kayleen Lynn Kessinger Elson was born March 21, 1943 in Lyons, Nebraska, and died August 3, 2026 at Cedarhurst Senior Living in LaVista, Nebraska.

The daughter of Alvin and Maxine Kessinger and the youngest of four children, Kayleen grew up on her parents’ farm near Bancroft, Nebraska, where her dog, Dandy, was her constant companion and her Palomino horse, Lucky, was her “pride and joy.” She graduated from Bancroft High School in 1960, attended Wayne State College for a year and then moved to Omaha to work.

In 1962 Kayleen married John Boulton, an airman from Camden, New Jersey. Over the next several years the Boultons lived at various Air Force bases in Turkey, Germany, Japan, and the United States. Their son, Steve, was born in Turkey in 1965, followed by daughters Danette (Germany, 1967) and Tricia (Germany, 1970).

Returning to Omaha, the Boultons divorced in 1974. Kayleen was married to David Carson from 1975 to 1987. She was married to Donald Wayne Elson from 1993 until his death in 2023.

Kayleen sold Mary Kay cosmetics for several years, so successfully that the company awarded her a new car as a prize. She worked many years for Omaha Fixtures. She was happy to be a mother and grandmother, and was fond of hosting family gatherings, especially on Christmas Eve.

She loved Husker football, was a lifelong fan of Roy Rogers and Western entertainment, and was fond of horses and dogs. Other than Christmas, her favorite holiday was St. Patrick’s Day, which she claimed as her own because it was near her birthday.

Kayleen was preceded in death by her loving husband of 30 years, Don Elson; parents Alvin and Maxine Kessinger; brother Doyle (Twilla) Kessinger; sister Patsy (Lyle) Heineman; brother-in-law Jack Gordon. She is survived by her sister Janice Gordon; children Steven (Lesley) Boulton, Danette (David) Bristow and Tricia (Tim) Thilges; grandchildren Amber (Drew) Welchert, Alexandra (John) Gudenrath, Ava and Charles Thilges; great grandchildren Zoey and Madelyn Welchert, Robert, Hattie, and baby Gudenrath; and many nieces, nephews, family and friends